Squeaky clean
Sep. 12th, 2013 10:47 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kengrI am once again reminded of something I've had to teach a number of bachelors and bachelorettes over the years.
"Squeaky clean" isn't just some odd phrase. It describes an actual condition. One that you *really* need to achieve to avoid various sorts of ick.
When you hand wash anything with a relatively smooth surface, try running you finger(s) over the surface. If it squeaks, it's clean. If it does, that's because there's still a thin layer of grease or oil coating that part of the surface.
All sorts of nasties can live and breed in that grease. Yeah, *most* of the time there isn't that much grease and nothing will happen. But all it takes is *once* to make you sick as a dog.
Even if it "merely" gives your food an "off" taste, that's a waste of the money (and time) you spent on that food.
Even if you have a dishwasher, you might want to try running a wet (with water, not spit, you slob :-) finger over a few surfaces, just to make sure the dishwasher is getting things properly clean.
Another suggestion for folks who are on their own for the first time is look into the food safety classes most local health departments give. Even if they charge for it, the food handler's card you get at the end is useful if you are looking for a job at a restaurant or even a fast food place. And (as I understand you can do in some places) if you can take it for free and just not get the card, it's worth it to learn a lot of stuff about food storage and handling that most folks don't know.
Sure, you'll probably skip a lot of the stuff they teach you. But *knowing* that you are taking a shortcut is ok because you have some idea of the risks.
Not like doing stuff because you don't *know* it's unsafe.
"Squeaky clean" isn't just some odd phrase. It describes an actual condition. One that you *really* need to achieve to avoid various sorts of ick.
When you hand wash anything with a relatively smooth surface, try running you finger(s) over the surface. If it squeaks, it's clean. If it does, that's because there's still a thin layer of grease or oil coating that part of the surface.
All sorts of nasties can live and breed in that grease. Yeah, *most* of the time there isn't that much grease and nothing will happen. But all it takes is *once* to make you sick as a dog.
Even if it "merely" gives your food an "off" taste, that's a waste of the money (and time) you spent on that food.
Even if you have a dishwasher, you might want to try running a wet (with water, not spit, you slob :-) finger over a few surfaces, just to make sure the dishwasher is getting things properly clean.
Another suggestion for folks who are on their own for the first time is look into the food safety classes most local health departments give. Even if they charge for it, the food handler's card you get at the end is useful if you are looking for a job at a restaurant or even a fast food place. And (as I understand you can do in some places) if you can take it for free and just not get the card, it's worth it to learn a lot of stuff about food storage and handling that most folks don't know.
Sure, you'll probably skip a lot of the stuff they teach you. But *knowing* that you are taking a shortcut is ok because you have some idea of the risks.
Not like doing stuff because you don't *know* it's unsafe.
